Instincts Can't Be Taught
by FaerieTales4ever
Summary: Vivian wanted to say something to Elle that night outside of Callahan's office. She was too much of a power house to let a prick like him ruin everything she'd worked for. Vivian won't let him win. Elle/Vivian Friendship only. Elle/Emmett


**A/N: Just a thing I wrote to help get me out of my slump. I know the fandom is pretty small, but I really hope you enjoy it. In the musical version of Legally Blonde, Vivian sees Elle right before the Legally Blonde duet between her and Emmett. She looks like she wants to say something, but can't work up the courage. Except… what if she did?**

 **I also tried a different writing style this time. If any of my regular readers stumble across this... let me know what you think!**

 **Disclaimer: Nothing familiar is mine, nothing is for profit.**

 **Summary: Vivian wanted to say something to Elle that night outside of Callahan's office. She was too much of a power house to let a prick like him ruin everything she'd worked for. Vivian won't let him win. Elle/Vivian Friendship only. Elle/Emmett**

 **Need You To Stay**

"Miss Woods?" Callahan's clipped voice made me swivel around just before Emmett could pull me over the threshold of the classroom. "Might I have a word?"

 _Oh, crap!_ I paused and glanced at Emmett, one pink Prada out the door. He hadn't called me Miss Woods since the day I'd refused to give up Brooke's alibi. But I'd made up for that today. Right?

I'd done something worthwhile in that courtroom for the first time since arriving here. For once, I was more than just some silly sorority girl who had only gotten into Harvard so she could win back her ex. I had no idea who that girl was anymore. She certainly wasn't me. I may have started this little trip to follow Warner, but now I had something to prove.

Emmett's eyes met mine as I nibbled my freshly glossed lip, half-tempted to just keep walking. I'd _just_ earned back Callahan's respect. What could've possibly changed in the last ten seconds?

I clasped his hand a little tighter; hoping the avalanche of worries running through my head weren't as visible on my face, though that was highly doubtful, seeing as my blush had darkened by at least two shades.

Emmett's lips curled into a small smile. He gave a rueful shake of his head. _You have nothing to worry about,_ he mouthed before slipping his fingers from mine. "Intern of the Year, remember?" he whispered against the shell of my ear, giving me a gentle shove over the threshold. A giggle snuck past my lips as a shiver skipped up my spine. I nudged my shoulder against his and he replied with an encouraging wink before disappearing down the corridor.

I waited until he was gone, and then took a deep breath and drew myself up before turning to face Callahan. "Thank you, for what you said back there. "It… It meant a lot to me. I know I probably wasn't your first choice and all for this so it-"

"Miss Woods-" he cut in with a soft chuckle.

"It just… It's nice to know I was actually helpful for once. After the whole thing with Brooke's alibi-"

"Elle-"

"I kind of... " I caught my lip between my teeth and wiped my palms on my skirt. I knew I was babbling, but the words wouldn't stop. "I kind of thought you were..." I forced a chuckle and picked at a stray thread on my navy blazer, "going to fire me."

"Elle, stop," Callahan ordered.

I blinked and looked up. It was only then that I realized, as seldom as he called me Miss Woods, I'd _never_ heard him use my first name before. I didn't know whether to dance a cha-cha or start quaking in my boots.

"You deserved the praise tonight." He leaned back against the desk and patted the empty place next to him. "Without you, we would've been-"

"Blood in the water." I finished his old saying with a small laugh as some of the tension released from my shoulders. Maybe I wasn't being fired tonight after all. "So you've said."

"It's true," he insisted, studying me over the rim of his glasses. "You saved our asses today, Elle." He paused. "But, don't tell the others I said so, I have a scary reputation to uphold."

I chuckled and waved my hand. "Don't worry, sir, your secret's safe with me." He tapped the spot again and I finally crossed the room to stand next to him. "Um, but I really do want to thank you for this opportunity to work with you. I've learned so much."

Callahan scoffed and crossed his arms. "What you've learned isn't the point. You have instincts, Elle." I sucked in my breath and sidestepped as his hand glided across the glossed desktop to rest near my thigh. "And instincts, lawyerly or otherwise, can't be taught."

"Thank you, sir," I managed, turning up my palms. "I mean, I didn't do anything, really. I just-"

"I think it's time we discussed your career path." He didn't bother to let me finish. "Have you thought about where you might be summer associate?"

My cheeks flamed. "Not really." In truth, I hadn't even had time to think much past this case, let alone to the summer. "I know it's very competitive…"

Callahan laughed and patted my knee. I stiffened under his calloused touch. "Well, you know what competition's really about, don't you?" His words came out in a low guttural growl and some time during our conversation, he had inched so close that I could feel his champagne-coated breath on my shoulder.

My mouth tasted like cotton. A shudder of dread passed through me. Every instinct screamed for me to slap his hand away and get out of this room as fast as I could, but it was as if my muscles had forgotten how to respond. I was frozen to the edge of the table.

"It's about ferocity, carnage-"

I couldn't help but flinch at those words. He punctured each of them with an inhuman snarl. His calculating gaze was colder than usual. I curled into myself as his dark eyes probed my lithe frame, seeing right past my thin business uniform to the depths of my soul.

"Balancing human intelligence with animal diligence." He inched closer still, draping his arm around my shoulder, refusing to let me squirm away. "Knowing _exactly_ what you want, and how far you'll go to get it." His mouth morphed into a snake-like smile, and before I knew what was happening, his hand cupped around my chin, yanking me forward until our lips were forced to meet.

I gasped and scrambled back, but his arm locked around my waist, pressing me to him. His free hand began roaming further and further upward. First my thigh, then my hip, then-

"Ow!" It was only when I tasted blood as he gnawed at my lips, greedy for things there was no way in hell I was going to give, that I was finally able to snap out of my daze. I shoved my weight back into his imprisoning embrace, raising my right hand so I collided directly with his cheek.

A sharp slap echoed through the corridor.

I stood there, craving for breath, and watching with wide eyes as my professor's mouth curled into a malicious smile. What the hell had just happened?

"I thought you were smarter than that," he sneered, wiping his now cracked glasses with a fresh rag from his lapel.

My mouth dropped open. A million questions swam in my mind, but one much louder than the rest as I clenched my fists and took a deep, shaky breath. "Is this the only reason you gave me the internship?" I rasped, hating the way my voice trembled. Saltwater stung the back of my eyes, but I fought to keep the tears at bay. No matter what, he wasn't going to get the satisfaction of seeing me break down.

Callahan's sickening grin only grew that much wider. "It's been nice working with you Miss Woods," he said. "You may show yourself out." And before I could protest any further, he turned on his heel and stalked out the door at the opposite end of the room, letting it slam behind him with a final, hollow thud.

Only then, when the last echo ricocheted off the walls and faded into nothingness, did the reality of all that had just happened hit me. My heart catapulted into my throat, and my stomach constricted until I could barely breathe. What little air I did manage to hold onto only made the staggering dizziness worse. The walls closed in around me. My legs buckled and I sunk back against the desk as the tears finally had the freedom to roll down my cheeks.

I'd thought nothing could compare to the night Warner broke my heart so many months ago. After my success in the courtroom, I felt ready to handle anything.

But this?

Nothing, _nothing_ could've prepared me for this. After everything, after all I'd done to try and prove myself… All the holidays I'd spent pouring over those stupid law books… God, I was such an _idiot_!

I thought back to when I'd outwitted Warner and won my first class case. I'd been so proud. A bit surprised, but proud nonetheless. And then, when I helped Paulette stand up to that bastard ex of hers…. The tears came faster, but I was powerless to stop them.

That day had been a real turning point for me. It was there, in that, junky, battered old trailer park that I really started deluding myself into thinking I could do this. That I realized I really _wanted_ to do this, and I was no longer here just to chase after Warner.

I thought... If I applied myself... If I just worked a little bit harder… I could show everyone that Elle Woods was more than just some pretty face. I was a lawyer. And a damned good one at that.

How could I have been so stupid?

I remembered the day I saw my name up on that list next to Warner's and Vivian's, how elated I'd been to have finally done something right after so many ridiculous, idiotic, _blonde_ blunders.

The internship it changed everything. Before then, Emmett had been the only one to really take the time to look at me.

But then, did he really look? Warner only wanted me for my pretty face and popular reputation, and Callahan only supported me to try and get into my pants. Was that what Emmett wanted too? How long before he dropped me after he found out what happened? Was I really his friend, or just some charity case he'd taken pity on to try and impress his boss?

With each horrifying realization, it got harder to breathe. If I didn't move soon, the pressure would smother me.

I crossed the room and wrapped my hand around the brass doorknob, my steps quick and sloppy as I tried to outrun the cycle of fears torturing my subconscious. "Go home, Elle." I told myself. "Just get to the dorm and book the first flight back to L.A. You never wanted to do this anyway." Lie. God, so _many_ lies! But I had to tell myself something if I wanted to make it back to my room without completely falling apart.

I thrust open the door and stepped into the hall… Right in the path of Warner and Vivian.

"Hello, _Marylin_." Warner scoffed,.

God, no. Not them. Anyone but them.

A familiar burn singed the back of my eyes, and I scrambled into the room, shielding my face with my hand as more tears dropped from my lashes. Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse.

"I guess you'll make partner now, huh? You really _earned_ it."

I stiffened. A small, pathetic sob escaped my lips, and I bit down on the exposed flush, praying I could hold it together just a little longer. Not only had Callahan tried to seduce me, but the two people that hated me most on this entire campus had _seen_ it happen.

"What's the matter, pooh bear?" Warner taunted. "You got what you wanted, didn't you? Top of the class. And you didn't even have to work to get there."

"Warner," Vivian hissed. "Shut up."

Warner snorted and stalked off; the corridor was plunged into silence.

"Elle...? Are you… Are you alright?" I spun around, startled by the tentative voice echoing through the cavernous room. To my astonishment, Vivian still blocked the door. She shuffled her feet and twined her hands together, but her brown eyes never left mine.

"What do _you_ want?" I sniffed, doing my best to glare at her despite how puffy and exhausted my eyes felt. "Shouldn't you be off spreading rumors with your fiancée?" I willed my voice to stay steady, to snap at her the way I wanted to, but all that came out was a bitter, raspy whisper.

Vivian staggered backward and a flash of pain contorted her sharp features. _Good_.

She'd shunned me since August. What did she expect me to say now that she wanted to play nice? I wiped my hand across my damp cheeks. "Besides, what do you care if I'm okay? You hate me, remember?"

Vivian sighed and chewed her lip. She stepped inside, brushing a dark lock behind her ear. "Elle, I don't hate you-"

I scoffed. "Yeah, right. You've been trying to get rid of me since the first day of term." I raised my brow, daring her to deny it. She only looked away guiltily. "That's what I thought," I said with a resolute nod in spite of the ball of regret curdling my insides. I straightened my glasses and readjusted my shoulder bag, stepping around her. "Well, congratulations! You won't have to worry about me anymore."

Vivian scrunched her brow. "What do you mean?"

"I'm going home. First thing tomorrow morning, I'm out of here for good. I shouldn't have come in the first place."

"Home?" she asked, placing her hand on the doorknob. "You mean…?'

"California, yes." I moved to pass her again, but she grabbed my shoulder.

Elle… " She shook her head. "That's crazy! You can't just leave. Not now."

"Oh?" I asked. "And why not? If I left, you would have Warner all to yourself. Isn't that what you want?"

"War.. Warner?" Vivian sputtered. "Is that really all you think I care about? That you won't be a threat to me and my ex-fiancée?"

"Isn't it?" Then, slowly, my eyes widened as I registered the rest of what she'd said. "Wait… Did you say…?"

"Ex, yes."

"He broke up with you?"

Vivian laughed and loosened her grip on my shoulders. "Actually, I broke up with him."

"...What?" I cocked my head to the side. "But… Why?"

Vivian shrugged and crossed the room to sit on the desk. I followed suit. "After what he said to you when you wouldn't give up Brooke's alibi-"

"I gave her my word, Vivian." She held up her hand and nodded.

"I know," she said. "And I admire you for sticking to it."

I sat down next to her, shocked. "You do?"

"I do. And what Warner said about only thinking of yourself…" She huffed. "I can't be with someone who thinks like that."

"Wow." I murmured. What else was there to say?

"Yeah," Vivian offered me a small smile. "He really is a jerk. Especially after what he said tonight. I'm… I'm sorry about that."

My stomach dropped, and I traced the grain of the wood with my index finger. "It doesn't matter." I shrugged. "I don't belong here, anyway."

Vivian exhaled through her nose and I winced, waiting for the backhanded insult. "Elle," she finally said. "After everything you've accomplished, are you really going to let one prick ruin it for you?"

"Huh?" I looked up. _Was she challenging me?_

"Look, as much as I hate to admit it, you _are_ a good lawyer. A great one, actually. Without you… We'd still be trying to pin down Nico. And, out of all of us, Brooke only really trusts you."

"You'll do fine without me. Maybe better, now that I won't be around to mess things up."

Vivian shoved off the table and spun around to face me, her eyes blazing. "This isn't about how we'll do, Elle, this is about you letting Callahan win."

"Wha-"

"If you leave now, he gets exactly what he wants, and Brooke very well might spend her life in jail."

"But-"

"No buts. You _love_ being a lawyer, I know you do. You shouldn't give up on something you love just because some asshole tried to talk you out of it."

"Says the asshole who's been trying to talk me out of it since day one," I spat. Vivian barely flinched.

"Well, I was wrong."

 _Excuse me?_ That was the last thing I'd expected her to say.

"You're right, I used to _pray_ for the day you'd be out of my hair. I mean, who in their right mind goes to UCLA as a _fashion major_ and then thinks she can hack it as a lawyer?"

I mustered a watery chuckle. It _did_ sound pretty ridiculous.

"But after what you did today, outing Nico like that?" She smiled. "Callahan may see a ditzy, bimbo little blonde girl sleeping her way to the top, but I see someone who doesn't have to. Dick as he may be, he was right about one thing. You have killer instincts, Elle. And without them… We _will_ lose this case."

"You're just as good," I argued. "I'm sure you'll be fine. Besides… You've got Emmett."

Vivian glared. "We do have Emmett," she agreed. "But he's the one who'd want you to stay most of all."

"No, he wouldn't." I choked on another sob and swallowed around the lump in my throat. "He never… He never cared about me. I was just some charity project he plucked off the street to impress his boss."

" _What?"_ a deep voice growled. Vivian and I whirled around to see Emmett standing in the doorway, looking absolutely livid.

"Emmett?" Was I hallucinating again, or was this actually happening? "Wh… What are you doing here?"

"Warner… told me what happened," he hissed through gritted teeth before crossing the room and gathering me in his arms. I melted into his embrace as he stroked my hair. "I came back to make sure you were okay, but…" He held me at arm's length and studied my tearstained face. Vivian backed away and let us have our space, for which I was extremely grateful.

"You're not really thinking of going back to California, are you? Not after all you've done."

I sighed. How many more times did I have to explain myself? "What other choice do I have, Emmett? It's not like I'm actually doing any good. At least in Malibu, I can-"

"You can, what?" He cut me off with a harsh sneer. "Prove Callahan right? Go back to being somebody's Barbie doll?" I cringed at the analogy, but he kept his arms wrapped around my waist. I wasn't going to be let go until he said his piece. "Elle… We both know you're so much more than that."

"But I'm not." I sniffed as Callahan's confession seared the forefront of my mind. "Don't you get it? I didn't _earn_ anything. Not the test grade, not the internship, I probably didn't even earn my way into Harvard. Everyone here just wants me for my looks… Just like Warner."

"I don't," Emmett whispered, reaching out and tracing the pad of his thumb over my cheeks to wipe away a stream of tears I hadn't even realized were falling. "You're not just some charity case to me, Elle. Not even close. You never have been."

"And why should I believe you?" I spat back. "Almost everything that happened since I got here has been a blatant, ridiculous, lie. What's to say this isn't the same?"

"Damnit! Elle, I love you!"

My head snapped up at that. _Did he really just say what I think he said?_ I caught my breath, a small spark of hope danced in my blue eyes. "You… what?"

"I said, I love you, Little Miss Woods Comma Elle. He smirked. "You are the best thing about this place."

 _Told you so,_ Vivian mouthed over his shoulder. I ignored her, my gaze never leaving Emmett's.

"You… do?"

"I do. So much so, that if you left, well then, I would just have to follow you."

"And then our legal team would really fall apart," Vivian joked.

We all laughed.

"And you say _I'm_ the crazy romantic." I giggled, slapping him on the shoulder.

Emmett just grinned. "So, does this mean you'll stay?" he whispered, already pulling me close.

I beamed, my heart beating so fast, I thought it might explode. "Yes," I breathed. "I'll stay."

Emmett swept me up in a bone-crushing hug that lifted me off my feet. When I came back down to earth, his lips brushed against mine in a chaste but passionate kiss that set butterflies a flutter in my stomach and made the rest of the world disappear. For a brief second, I wondered if all of this was nothing more than a crazy dream, but if it was, I never wanted to wake up.


End file.
